The Burpin Gherkin

The test results are in from the pH probe test. It has been determined that with the introduction of the feeds Ash's stomach is producing more pickle juice. Great that is what is supposed to happen, however the stomach contents are not all heading south, far to many are going north. Over the course of a 24 hour period Ash was refluxing over 250 times. That is one Burpin Gherkin. This means every 5 min or so she has pickle juice flowing the wrong direction. Now we are knowing why our little Gherkin has been so fussy. Trish did not get a bit of sleep last night as Ash was crying, uncomfortable, and throwing up most of the night. This morning Trish convinced them to turn off her feeds and within a matter of minutes Ash was up and playing and having a great time with that little awnry personality we have come to appreciate. So the decision has been made and we are going to move forward with the Nissen Fundoplication. I won't take the time to go into details about how this works, I will just some it up by saying they will open her back up and tie a knot around her esophagus with the fundus (top part) of her stomach. The idea is that the band of muscular tissue will support the action of the esophageal sphincter and Waala... significantly reducing the reflux. So goes the plan goes. Pickle juice all flows south and we are left with one happy Gherkin. Unfortunately for Ash there is not an easy way to do this surgery. Once a transplant patient always a transplant patient. Her graft(new liver) is partially lying on top of her stomach and thus the operation is going to require opening up the original transplant scar and lifting the liver out of the way in order to gain access to the stomach. Another chapter in Ashley's Story.

Thanks for reading along as we write this story. Thank you for your prayers as we face another difficult chapter. Thank you for your comments and guestbook entries as they help us see those who love our Gherkin. Please lift up Trish today.

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